e rest of their days in the harems of the
Jivaros. These Indians have the singular custom and art of compressing
the heads of their notable captives; taking off the skin entire and
drying it over a small mould, they have a hideous mummy which preserves
all the features of the original face, but on a reduced scale."[105]
They also braid the long black hair of their foes into girdles, which
they wear as mementoes of their prowess. They use chonta-lances with
triangular points, notched and poisoned, and shields of wood or hide.
They have a telegraphic system which enables them to concentrate their
forces quickly in time of war; large drums are placed on the tops of the
hills, and a certain number of strokes, repeated along the line, rapidly
convey intelligence to the most distant habitation.

[Footnote 105: Bates (ii., 132) speaks of a similar custom among the
ancient Mundurucus: "They used to sever the head with knives made of
broad bamboo, and then, after taking out the brain and fleshy parts,
soak it in bitter vegetable oils, and expose it several days over the
smoke of a fire, or in the sun."]

An odd custom prevails among these wild Indians when an addition is made
to the family circle. The woman goes into the woods alone, and on her
return washes herself and new-born babe in the river; then the husband
immediately takes to his bed for eight days, during which time the wife
serves him on the choicest dainties she can procure.[106] They have also
the unique practice of exchanging wives. The Jivaro speech is sonorous
and energetic. They do not use salt; so that they distinguish the Napo
tribes as the "Indians who eat salt." The chief articles manufactured by
them are cotton goods and blowpipes. They trade mostly at Canelos and
Macas, generally purchasing iron implements, such as hatchets and
knives.

[Footnote 106: A like custom existed among some Brazilian and Guiana
tribes. It also prevailed to some extent among the ancient Cantabrians
and Corsicans, the Congos and Tartars, and in the Southern French
provinces.]

Canelos consists of about seventy families of Quichua-speaking Indians,
and lies on the south bank of the Bobonaza. A trail connects it with
Banos, at the foot of Tunguragua. Canelos was founded in 1536, and
derives its name from its situation in the Canela, or American cinnamon
forest. The bark of the tree has the flavor of the Ceylon aromatic;
but, according to Dr. Taylor, it is cassia. Macas, in the da